Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78250 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78250 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Tessa’s smile evaporates. Her gaze flicks over Roxie like she’s lint, but her saccharine tone returns. “Oh. I didn’t realize you were… entertaining.”
Even across the distance between us, I feel Roxie tense, and my patience officially taps out. I step forward, crowding Tessa back out of the front doorway. “You need to leave. Now.”
She blinks at me like I’ve spoken in binary, but then she scoffs and snaps, “I’m not going anywhere until I speak to Boone. He and I have history. That matters to some people, Dillon. You can’t possibly think—”
“I don’t need to think,” I cut in. “I know that he finally figured out he deserves better than someone who loved his money more than she loved him.”
Her nostrils flare, and I’m absurdly delighted that I’ve gotten under her skin. Roxie comes down the last of the stairs, her footsteps quiet but steady. Brave. Strong.
Tessa’s lips curl into a sneer. “So, this is my replacement? Cute. I guess Boone downgraded.”
Roxie flinches, and I swear to God, I see red. I take another step forward, my voice lower now and sharp as a blade. “Say something like that again. I dare you.”
Tessa scoffs again. “You can’t throw me out. Boone and I—”
“Are done. Over. Fossilized. And if you think you can saunter back into his life because you heard he made a few good business moves, then let me be crystal clear about this.”
I swing the door wide and step back, my eyes never leaving hers. “Get the fuck out of town and never come back.”
She stares at me, clearly shocked, but then she switches tactics, narrowing her eyes at Roxie like she’s found a weak spot. “I’ll be back. This isn’t finished.”
“Oh, it definitely is,” I mutter, completely ignoring the menace in her tone.
She huffs, tightens her ridiculously tiny coat around her, and stomps down the front stairs, her heels sinking into the snow. I slam the door shut, lock it, and blow out a long breath. Roxie stands a few feet away, her arms wrapped around herself and her face ashen.
“Are you okay?” I ask, walking over and wrapping my hands around her hips. “Ignore her. She’s an asshole.”
Roxie nods, but her eyes are too shiny. “That was Boone’s ex?”
“Yeah, but trust me, she’s even worse on the inside.”
Roxie lets out a shaky laugh, and I slide an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into me, protective to the point of feeling feral. “Don’t worry. We won’t let her anywhere near you. Or Boone. Or this family.”
I don’t say it out loud, but even as I hold her, I know it in my bones that this isn’t the last we’ll see of Tessa. She isn’t going to go quietly into the night.
Sighing as I guide Roxie into the kitchen, I don’t let go of her until she stops shaking. Even then, I keep one hand on the small of her back, partly because she needs the reassurance and partly because I do.
Tessa showing up like a bad virus isn’t just inconvenient. It’s a threat, and I’m not above admitting I feel protective enough to bite because of it.
I put the kettle on, grab Roxie’s favorite mug, and drop in the herbal tea she likes. I set it in front of her at the island, then hop up on the counter across from her.
No laptop, no multitasking, no jokes. Just me watching her wrap both hands around the warm mug even before it’s steeped enough. She glances up at me. “I’m sorry. I just didn’t expect…”
“Tessa?” I snort after she trails off. “No one expects Tessa. She’s like a migraine with eyelashes, shows up uninvited and ruins your whole day.”
She lets out a quiet laugh, but she also stares into her tea like she’s trying to read omens in leaves that aren’t even there. “She’s beautiful, and confident, and she was married to him. I’m sure she thinks she can just walk back in and—”
“No,” I cut in, sharper than I mean to. She looks up, and I soften my voice. “Tessa being here changes nothing, Rox. Boone hasn’t loved her in a very, very long time.”
She doesn’t argue, but she doesn’t look convinced either, so I lean back against the counter and let out a slow, long breath. “Look, while it’s just the two of us, I’ll level with you in a way Chance won’t and Boone can’t. Boone isn’t objective when it comes to what really happened back then.”
“And you are?”
I shrug. “I was there through it all. I saw it go down.”
“So, what happened?” I look right into her eyes. “Boone has always been a good guy. Stupidly honorable. Loyal to the bone. Strong as hell. The kind of man who’d jump in a river to save someone’s dog even if he couldn’t swim.”
She smiles softly. “I can picture that.”